Longtime CFL defensive back Loucheiz Purifoy has joined the coaching staff at Tate High School. He will be the team’s safeties coach.
The 32-year-old played 16 games for the Edmonton Elks this past season, recording 45 defensive tackles, three special teams tackles, five interceptions, and one sack. He was named All-West Division at safety.
Purifoy was cut by the Elks in January when he was suspended for two games for violating the CFL’s drug policy, though he was already a pending free agent.
The CFL Players’ Association (CFLPA) released a statement condemning the suspension shortly after it was announced. The union claimed the defensive back tested positive for Adderall, for which he had a prescription to treat ADHD. The union also claimed that the league instructed the Elks not to apply for an emergency exemption, which would have allowed the case to undergo an independent medical review.
In a statement to 3DownNation, the league claimed Purifoy “irrefutably violated” the policy and that the CFLPA elected not to file a grievance. The Elks declined 3DownNation’s request for comment.
The five-foot-eleven, 190-pound defensive back played nine total seasons in the CFL as a member of the B.C. Lions, Ottawa Redblacks, Saskatchewan Roughriders, and Elks.
In 131 career games, Purifoy recorded 376 defensive tackles, 33 special teams tackles, 24 interceptions, nine sacks, six forced fumbles, and two defensive touchdowns. He was twice named All-West Division and once named All-CFL.
Purifoy played for the Indianapolis Colts and Seattle Seahawks in 2014 before starting his CFL career in 2016.
Tate High School is located in Pensacola, Fla. where Purifoy was born and raised, though he attended a different high school before playing collegiately at the University of Florida.
